The fast-approaching figures were, of course, my Automatons.
They whooshed and glided through the air with ease, entering the building through the windows that were opened for ventilation.
>VWUUUMMM!!<
The Rankers were already prepared for an assault, and I could see the students cowering in fear. The staff readies their Magic, and for a moment, unrest reigned.
Only I, Kuzon, and Ciara remained seated.
"Calm yourselves. They're with me." My voice interrupted the violent tone of Fabian and the others who were ready to cut down the cloaked bats that began appearing.
They sharply turned at me in surprise. I could see disbelief lurking in their eyes as about a dozen Automatons flocked around me where I sat. I smiled, nodding my head slowly to dissuade their suspicions.
"What's going on here? What are those?" Fabian barked, losing his composure for a moment.
I noticed one of his hands shaking, but he quickly brought it under control.
'So, this much is enough to frighten them, uh? How effective will they be against the Demons?'
I sighed and rose from my seat.
I had the eyes of everyone on me, just as planned.
Even the students and staff that weren't invited to our little meeting now gave curious stares in my direction.
"They're my Automatons. I sent them out earlier. It looks like they're back…" I explained, looking at the surprised expression of the people surrounding me.
They must have been incredibly surprised that I could do such a thing.
"Now, then, there's no time… so I'll explain something to you all."
I could feel silence permeating the room. Using this opportunity, I activated Sound Amplification Spell, making sure everyone in the building could hear me.
"Defense isn't an option in this conflict, neither is blind assault. Our best shot is coordinating our efforts to achieve the most optimal result."
At this point, I had completely abandoned anything that would cause my audience to view me as a child. My face was hardened with seriousness, and I ensured my eyes displayed a glint of authority. Plus, I made sure to exude a confident aura.
If I flopped now, there was a chance they would go along with a dumb plan.
"I suggest we attack the Demons in units, whittle down their forces and deal distracting blows at several coordinates. We'll bolster both defensive and offensive maneuvers, but… that is only a means to an end."
Shock. Absolute shock was shown on their faces as I addressed the issue the way only a veteran would speak.
"The main objective will be to spearhead an assault to the heart of the enemy's strategy—the Lecturer's meeting hall."
The whole reason these Demons were wreaking havoc was due to the absence of our competent staff. Once they lost hold of that advantage, their plans were as good as dead.
"We should focus on finding their Hall and alert them of the threat, not just waiting for them to conclude their Academy Review."
Of course, this posed its own share of problems, but… it was the most optimal solution.
"W—what the hell are you talking about?"
"Find it? Didn't you hear Mister Garliad? Even the Dorm Masters don't know the location."
"How would we even be able to find something so confidential? Especially in this chaos?!"
I knew they would say something like that.
"That's why I sent these Automatons earlier. They were twenty-one of them in total, but only twelve made it back, it seems."
By having some act as decoys and using the others to achieve the task I entrusted to them, this was the expected result. In essence, I expected this outcome. The twelve Automatons were the only ones I needed, to begin with.
"W—what would those things do?"
"I didn't say I was done…" I glared at Richard Novo's flustered face and he squeaked before falling silent.
Everyone—with the exception of a few people—was flustered and scared. In times of emergencies, being confronted with the unknown, humans were very vulnerable—especially mentally.
I was going to capitalize on that.
"These Automatons were imbued with image-capturing Magic. I used them to survey the whole Campus while placing them under camouflage. The few that didn't return served as decoys in case the other ones would be found out, and so here we are."
Gasps permeated the room. Some were of amazement, while others reeked of disbelief.
"Y—you did all that? When…?" Fabian asked, now looking shell-shocked.
I had a good grasp of the prince's personality. He had great pride in his abilities, but he was too sheltered growing up. Experiencing this form of despair would be the first for him. And those emotions were probably too much for him to control.
'The more special you think you are, the greater the trauma you experience when met with despondency…' I recalled my personal experience.
The prince still had an image to depict, though, so he was trying to pull himself and everyone together. His inquisition toward me contained a tinge of bitterness that stemmed from the fact that my actions were something he couldn't have come up with.
"A while back. On my way to rescue Ana, to be precise. I've been preparing them for a while since it takes quite a while to produce so many Automatons at once…" I lied.
His suspicious gaze lessened.
"I figured it would be good to get a good lay of the campus grounds to understand the geography better. Plus, we would be able to pinpoint the areas that are more saturated with the Shadows…"
'… And also to figure out their objective'
"A—ah, I see…" Fabian managed to murmur.
He couldn't hide his surprise from me. In fact, it wasn't just him. Even the staff, Garliad was amazed.
'I knew this would happen. It's why I told Aloe and the girls not to mention the fact that I used Resurrection Magic.'
There were things people wouldn't be able to understand, so unless it was necessary, I would rather contain some information.
The only ones who were not too flustered were Kuzon and Ciara. As expected, those two were unique people… for different reasons.
"As expected, you had something up your sleeves…"
Kuzon was incredibly smart.
"So, those were the things I was sensing in the air. I figured it was the Academy's defenses."
Ciara was extremely sharp.
These two were my ace… the trump cards of Ainzlark.
And me? I was the wild card…
The Joker!
